The ability to effectively secure and transport piping of various size such as oil derrick piping has been a continued goal of the energy industry for many years.
Historically, heavy and cumbersome oil well piping was manually transported and manipulated during the drilling of an oil well. Several workers would have to work in combination to lift, move, and position extremely dangerous oil well pipe numerous times a day. The combination of heavy loads and awkward shapes created potentially deadly hazards for everyone on a well site.
Mechanisms have been introduced to relieve workers from handling oil well piping unnecessarily. However, the mechanisms have created as many dangerous hazards as they have prevented due to the excessive force of hydraulic pistons and numerous moving parts. An oil well worker could easily get a body part severed or suffer a deadly trauma from the sudden and powerful movement of the various components of past pipe management mechanisms.
As such, the ever growing demand for increased energy production from drilling operations calls for a pipe handling assembly that increases safety while effectively supplying oil well pipe to an oil derrick. Accordingly, there is a continuing need for improved pipe handling assemblies that can secure and transport pipe in a safe and efficient manner.